Coco Gauff and reigning champion Iga Swiatek to meet in Roland-Garros semi-finals

PARIS — (AP) — Coco Gauff and defending champion Iga Swiatek will meet in the Roland Garros semifinals after their victories on Tuesday.

Gauff, seeded No. 3, came back to defeat Ons Jabeur 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 to reach the semifinals at a third consecutive Grand Slam tournament. No. 1 Swiatek followed the Philippe Chatrier court with a 6-0, 6-2 win over Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova to extend her Roland Garros winning streak to 19 matches as she seeks a third straight trophy in Paris and a fourth in five years. .

Gauff won her first major title at the US Open in September, then advanced to the final four at the Australian Open in January. The 20-year-old American was runner-up to Swiatek at the 2022 French Open.

In total, Swiatek won 10 of 11 meetings against Gauff, including a 6-4, 6-3 semifinal victory on clay last month en route to the Italian Open title.

Besides a tough and close three-set triumph over four-time major champion Naomi Osaka in the second round last week, Swiatek has been at her best at the French Open, showing why she has led the WTA rankings almost every week since April. 2022 and is a popular choice to come away with another title.

Forget the 17 games Osaka has managed, and Swiatek has only lost a total of 11 games in her other four matches so far.

Swiatek followed up her 6-0, 6-0 shutout of Anastasia Potapova in the fourth round by winning the first seven matches against Vondrousova.

And make no mistake: Vondrousova is no slouch. In addition to being a Grand Slam champion, she was a finalist at the French Open in 2019, won a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics and is currently ranked No. 6.

But she never had a chance against Swiatek, who compiled 25 winners to just 10 unforced errors. Swiatek, a 23-year-old from Poland, faced just one break point – and, naturally, she saved it.

Jabeur’s mix of speed and rotation sometimes gave Gauff fits. And as known as Gauff is for her ability to cover the ground and play defense, Jabeur managed to continue to come up with winners, finishing with 30 in total.

“She played very well the whole match. She hit me a lot of winners, which I’m not used to against anyone,” Gauff said. “So today I was just trying to be aggressive towards the end.”

Gauff took a 5-2 lead in the final set, then needed three match points to close things out, acknowledging afterward that she may have become a little tense during the sequence. The final match was crucial, with Gauff having to save a break point, then Jabeur spurning a match point with a disguised drop that sparked a roar from the stands to which the 29-year-old Tunisian responded by putting her right index finger to her ear .

But on Gauff’s next chance to seal victory, Jabeur missed a shot over the top. Gauff smiled, then raised his arms and shouted.

While the main stadium crowd sometimes loudly supported Jabeur, Gauff didn’t play badly in the first set. But No. 8 seed Jabeur – a three-time major finalist – was superb, winning 17 of 18 first-serve points, never facing a single break point and accumulating a 12-5 advantage on aggregate. .

When she hit an ace at 114 mph (184 km/h) to end the set, Jabeur nodded repeatedly.

“She is a tough opponent and is very popular on tour. I could tell the crowd today – I know you wanted her to win. Honestly, whenever she’s not playing (me), I’m cheering for her too,” Gauff said.

“Even though you were for Ons, I really had a lot of fun, even when I lost the first set and they were singing when I was in the bathroom,” Gauff said of his trip out of the court after the first set. “I was like, ‘This is really a lot of fun, win or lose.’ It is.”

Gauff then launched into action, raising her level and trying to gain the upper hand in longer rallies. She scored 16 winners in the final two sets, while breaking serve four times.

“I know I have a lot of love here in Paris. Trust me, I know,” said Gauff, who won the French Open junior title at age 14. “So, I really appreciate it, and I hope you can help me get through the next round.”

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AP Tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis